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Donald Trump

Will Tucker Carlson Become Michael Cohen?

April 25, 2023
by Peter Feinman
Michael Cohen Testifying (Source: Diego M. Radzinschi) and Tucker Carlson receiving a subpoena for January 6 (Getty Images)

Will Tucker Carlson become Michael Cohen? Right now commentators comment on the options Carlson has for his future. Some of the suggestions may be taken as tongue in cheek: no, he will not work for RT … although he could become a reporter for them! The problem then would not be disseminating his message in Russia but in the United States. If he does not care about his American audience then playing the Russian card seems legitimate. But Carlson is a young male by Don Lemon standards still in his prime so he may prefer something larger. As the great Yogi said, “when you come to the fork in the road, take it.” Carlson is now at that proverbial fork in the road.

ANOTHER NETWORK

Yes, there are other networks. Whether or not they can afford Carlson is another matter. Furthermore, another network will not give him the outsize presence in the American political arena he had with Foxhub. Does the name Chris Cuomo ring a bell? How about Bill O’Reilly? Or Glen Beck? At some point, Carlson’s slot will be filled. That person will be different in style and personality but probably not too much in politics and social values … at least those expressed on the air.

It is not as if the audience Carlson cared about in the texts revealed in the lawsuit will automatically follow him to wherever he goes. After all that audience already knows that Carlson cannot be trusted to tell them the truth or to respect their intelligence. It is hard to see how another network or even creating his own podcast will keep him in the limelight. Anyone who accepts his invitation to appear on Carlson’s show would be jeopardizing their chances to appear on Foxhub.

WORK FOR TRUMP

Another possibility is to work for Trump in some capacity during the campaign and then during the Trump administration. This option poses its own problems. Carlson is used to operating independently and not being supervised by anyone. While it is perfectly permissible for Trump himself to go off the deep rails secure in the knowledge that his flunkies will support him, the same cannot be said in reverse. Apparently some of Carlson’s shows surprised and angered the higher ups in the Fox business organization. If that happened in a Trump bureaucracy, then Carlson would not last long. How long could Carlson survive if kept on a tight leash? Imagining him as a Press Secretary brings shudders to everyone and his survival time would be limited.

BECOME A NEW TUCKER CARLSON

For now Carlson is facing his own lawsuit and who knows if there are more to come. If the charges prove true, then it is a whole new ball game. Then he has to become concerned not only with spreading disinformation, but with the consequences of his having created a toxic work environment that could lead to more lawsuits down the road wherever he is hired.

Strangely enough despite the rape trial and revival of the Access Hollywood tapes, there have been no additional charges for anything Trump has done in the last 15 years. It is probably the longest he has gone without any sexual and/or harassment charges being levied against him. Since he still is a person of no morals, the change is not because Trump saw the light. Perhaps his current wife lay down the law about what would happen if he is caught again. On the other hand, given his age, it is possible he just lost his mojo. Either way, the change in behavior is rather remarkable. So maybe Carlson’s next work environment won’t be as toxic. He could change.

BECOME THE NEW MICHAEL COHEN

One final consideration is to go straight and tell the truth. What does he have to gain by not telling the truth? Everybody knows now what he really thought about January 6 in contrast to his “documentary.” We have heard what he has had to say/tweet about the cast of characters and their “evidence” to overturn the results of the 2020 election. We know what he thinks about calling the election in Arizona. We certainly know what he has said/tweeted about the person who actually was trying to steal the election. So when Carlson is deposed to appear in the Federal investigation into the events surrounding January 6, what reason does he have to lie or to take the Fifth?  Think of how much he knows about the goings on inside the White House and inside the head of the President.

If Carlson should decide to tell the truth, then the floodgates maybe opened. There are so many topics Carlson potentially could tell the truth about with even more coverage that Michael Cohen. Ukraine, COVID, COVID vaccines in addition to January 6. These are not areas where Carlson would be asked to violate his values. Instead all he would be asked to do is to tell the truth.

Carlson would then have the opportunity to explain the Dominion tweets which so rocked the non-Trump world. Michael Cohen does not hesitate for a moment to delve into the psyche and emotional immaturity of the person he calls DONALD. We already know what Carlson really thinks about Trump the person. One can imagine Carlson having counted the weeks, the days, the hours, and the minutes before he was rid of the demonic destroyer he passionately despises. Now here we are almost two years later with Carlson out of a job and Trump on the path to Presidential Election Round II. So why not tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? He has no audience to lose and a place in history to gain.

At this point, no one knows for sure what Tucker Carlson will do. Even he might not know. His mind may be a swirl of emotions and roads to take. It may take time for it to settle down. In the meantime there will be more Trump indictments and possible subpoenas. Carlson had moments in his past when he wondered about his journey when things were not going well in his career. Now he is at the biggest moment of his life with the biggest fork in the road staring him in the face. Will Tucker Carlson become a profile in courage or will he continue to be the toxic person spewing disinformation wherever he goes for the rest of his life?

Indictment Water Torture: Drip (1), Drip (2), Drip (3), Drip (4) …

April 2, 2023
by Peter Feinman
The constant drip of indictments (Individual image from WABC)

Donald Trump has now entered a new phase of his life. From this point in life until the day he dies, his life will revolve around criminal charges. Whereas for decades he has succeeded in avoiding having criminal charges filed against him, in this new phase, everything will be about his criminality – his indictments, his trials, his penalties including possible imprisonment.

All the while as this first indictment of the Wicked Witch of the West Wing unfolds, he will watch a parade of his nearest and dearest Flying Monkeys being forced to testify against him. And he has to live with the possibility that one or more of them could go “Michael Cohen.” After all, what does Steve Bannon have to gain by falling on his sword for him and going to prison for him?

A key area not being fully discussed is the logistics of the indictments. I am not referring to what may or may not happen on Tuesday when he supposedly peacefully surrender. Instead I am referring to what happens when the next indictment occurs which should be imminent. That one will be “massive” and include a host of characters in a possible RICO charge.

All the fuss about the weakness of the New York indictment and whether it should have been first or not misses the point. For now it occupies center stage. The trial won’t even begin for months. But in a few short days that indictment will share the stage with the next indictment. Stop focusing on the minutia of what will happen Tuesday and start thinking about what will happen after the next indictment and the ones to come.

THE DEFENDANT 

Obviously one person cannot be in two places at the same time. The challenge the judges will have is in the scheduling of the two cases. They will have to coordinate their decisions. Will the two cases be tried sequentially? If so, which one comes first?

To some extent the scheduling may depend on what appeals are filed. By now all judges are wise to the ways of delay practiced by the defendant and his expensive lawyers who demand to be paid. At this point, regardless of what indictment came first, that does not mean which case will be tried first.

Where will the defendant stay at night for the Fulton County indictment? To the best of my knowledge he does not have a home there. Will he say at the home of a MAGA supporter who subsequently will turn the room into a tourist site? Will he stay in jail (which is free!)? How about Motel 6? Whatever the answer is, the point is the defendant will have to make lodging decisions about where he will stay during the trial of each indictment. Those decisions will be dependent on the decisions of others, that is, the judges. Other people will now have control of his schedule.

JURORS  

There are limits as to how much the judges can disrupt the lives of the jurors during these trials. They are, after all, regular Americans with lives to lead. If the judges seek to alternate the conducting of the trials if they are not sequential, then how would that work? If there are too many gaps leading to too long a trial, then that would not be fair to either the defendant or the jurors. The scheduling of the two trials given multiple indictments is not a topic that I have heard discussed so far.

In addition, jurors will be aware of the jurors from the other cases. They will see how these jurors are treated in the media and by MAGAs. Even if they are precluded from discussing their own case, they will be talking about the other cases.

DEFENDANTS

The probable additional defendants in the Fulton County case adds another complicating wrinkle to the scheduling efforts.

Suppose the Fulton County case defendants includes elected officials. All the attention so far has been on what the New York indictment means for the presidential campaign of one individual. But what if you are a sitting Senator or Georgia State representative, then what? How will your appearances in Court as a defendant during the trial coincide with when your legislative chamber is in session? The effort to reconcile these competing scheduling requirement may well tax the judicial offices. Where is the AI program to weigh all these variables?

GAG ORDER

Time and time again, people advise the best advice for a client like Donald Trump is to keep your mouth shut. Time and time again such advice falls on deaf ears. His recent threatening of death and destruction and inciting MAGAs to take the law into their own hands are examples of this. It only leads to additional charges. Racism and anti-Semitism already have been unleashed. There will be more to come.

Can he take the advice of counsel this time? Presumably, whatever the schedule is for the two trials, he will have weekends off to campaign. Is it possible for him to appear at professional political wrestling rally and not talk about the trials? Exactly what else will he want to talk about for 1-2 hours? Even if he is given a script, past experience shows that he will not stick to it. How will he respond to shouts from the audience about the indictments?  And what about his use of social media?

At first he may try self-constraint. For an immature child with the emotional maturity of a three-year old, there is a very short window in which he can behave. Are his handlers going to take away his devices? Are his campaign appearances going to cease because his lawyers, and not the judges, seek to muzzle him? The discussion about the impact of the indictments on his presidential campaign miss the point since it focuses on the reactions of the MAGAs. The true challenge to him will be to curtail speech that would get him in legal trouble. Such self-censorship cannot last for long hence the gag orders. Now we would have a presidential candidate forbidden to communicate until such communications are screened by the judge. In legal terms the logistics of two cases may drive him bonkers.

FEDERAL INDICTMENTS  

The pending federal indictments only complicate the matters more. Besides the scheduling, inconveniencing of the jurors, and gag order on a presidential candidate, there are political considerations.

The federal indictments can be divided into four cases:

1. Mar-a-Lagogate – the easy one. It could follow soon after the Fulton County case. This one is fairly straightforward and caries some serious penalties. By this time, Americans will have become used to seeing him arraigned. Maybe some elected MAGA officials will have grown tired of defending him by this point. Maybe they will have seen that contrary to everything Lindsay Graham has said there will not have been any violent uprisings to take the country back from George Soros operatives.

The real political disruption will occur in the next three indictments

2. Obstruction at the state legislatures

3. Alternate electors

4. January 6.

These indictments involve Republican Congressmen referred to in the Georgia phone call. Forget about Mark Meadows and all the other Flying Monkeys for a moment. Focus on the complicit Republican Congressmen. Republicans have a very narrow majority at present. Lindsay Graham’s absence from the Senate because he is on trial does not change the dynamics of the Senate. Five MAGA Representatives on trial does change the dynamics of the House. It changes who will have the majority on the floor of the House for any vote even before 2024. It changes who are running the retribution committees. It changes who may run in 2024.

 

To wrap up, the New York criminal indictment, separate from the civil indictment with an October trial set, is just the beginning of the rest of the life of Donald Trump. It will have immediate effects simply in scheduling and conducting the trials. It will have medium term political effects when he is gagged by either his lawyers or the judge and in maintaining a working Republican majority in the House. And it will have long term effects as people decide to get off the Trump bus and instead throw him under it. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

 

The Meltdown of the Immature Child and the 2024 Elections

March 26, 2023
by Peter Feinman
Sean Hannity: Trump is a bats--- crazy person

We are witnessing the meltdown of the immature-child loser former president right before our very eyes. People who listened to Mary Trump about her uncle with the emotional maturity of a three year old should not be surprised. People who think of him as an adult may be surprised.

Hard to believe but I first starting blogging about our immature child president over five years ago.

Tom Hanks versus Our Immature Child-President August 8, 2017

Tom Hanks and Donald Trump, Round II March 16, 2020

My conclusion was fairly simple. Through no fault of his own, he is locked into same age Tom Hanks was before he became Big but without the maturity. No surgery, no drug treatment, no therapy can alter that fact. He has been an immature child since the day his father put him in military school in the vain hope that he would grow up. He is an immature child now. He will be an immature child on the day he dies.

I am hardly the only person who recognized that he was an immature child.

“PRESIDENT IS STILL A CHILD…” (Headline NYT July 8, 2020): YES! YES! YES!  July 9, 2020

“He is and always will be a terrified little boy,” according to Mary Trump. Exactly. Every decision he makes should be understood through this prism. And it’s only going to get worse for him. The real world is closing in on him in every judicial decision, every poll, and every coronavirus death. Imagine the shock the terrified little boy will experience that first time the jail doors slam on him at Rikers.

Now nearly three years later, he can hear the prison doors as one indictment will follow after another.

For example, Maggie Haberman wrote and spoke about Trump as an immature child. She wrote that some saw nefarious ends in Trump’s behavior, while others “believed he was operating with the emotional development of a 12-year-old, using the intelligence data to get attention for himself.” In an online interview on January 22, 2023, for new book Confidence Man, I asked her:

“Mary Trump says her uncle is an immature child with emotional maturity of a three-year old. Paul Krugman calls him a 14-year old. How do you prepare for an interview with and report on such a person who craves attention more than anyone you have ever covered?”

The last phrase was built on Haberman’s own comment earlier in the interview (not by me) that he craves attention more than anyone she has ever covered. In her reply, she said “Excellent question” and suggested ways of making the conversation about his early days in New York City to create a mood and setting before turning to today and politics.

How often have you heard the phrase “adults in the room” applied to the situation in his White House? We the People could rest easy secure in the knowledge that there were adults in the room who would prevent him from going off the rails. Then one by one Team Normal disappeared to be replaced by a series of whack-a-doodles like Séance Sydney and Ridiculous Rudy and even more dangerous threats to democracy in America like Steve Bannon.

But now those people are facing their own legal jeopardy. Executive privilege no longer applies assuming it ever did. Remember the mantra: everyone who defied a subpoena will be called to testify.

In this new legal world for Trump, what does he have to look forward to?

What Do Putin and Trump Have to Look Forward to? November 13, 2022

2023: The Year of Indictments December 22, 2022

We need to keep in mind that the Congressional referrals [by the House Select Committee] were hardly a surprise. People were just waiting for them to happen. There is a lesson here for Jack Smith: no surprise actions. Keep the people informed. Give us time for your actions to percolate in our brains so when the moment comes any anger will have been diffused.

 Trump has nothing to look forward to for the rest on this year and in 2023, the Year of Indictments. And there is more to come.

 Finally the real world is catching up with the alternate reality in Donald Trump lives.

Alternate Realities: Science Fiction and the 2020 Election November 11, 2020

A Star Trek episode, The Squire of Gothos (Trelane), predicted January 20, 2021 back in 1967. In that episode the adult alien squire figure really is an immature child in the body of an adult. Here are some lines from an earlier blog (May 24, 2019) that still resonate today….

 [T]he pivotal moment comes when Trelane’s parents show up and put a stop to all of his “games”… Immediately, Trelane’s speech patterns change, going from superior and jovial scoundrel to a cranky little boy whose mommy and daddy are telling him it’s time to put his toys away and take a nap. Despite all of his blusterings and exhilaration of the hunt, Trelane protests that he’s just playing around, makes excuses, and even whines that he never gets to have any fun….[T]his call[s] to mind images of a young child being told it’s bedtime right in the middle of playing with its toys.

 Exactly our present situation. Now the adults have shown up.

Mr. Spock: For the record, Captain, how do we describe him? Pure mentality? A force of intellect? Embodied energy? Super-being? He must be classified, sir.

 Captain James T. Kirk: Then a small boy. And a very naughty one at that.

 Mr. Spock: It WILL make a strange entry in the library banks.

 Captain James T. Kirk: But then he was a very strange small boy.

All the talk about whether the hush-money case is too small to be the first indictment and one where the Manhattan District Attorney could lose miss the point. Simply with the threat of a criminal indictment looming over him we have seen a rapid degeneration in his language, both verbal and body. There is no more talk about how he would enjoy the perp walk where he would be the center of attention. Quite the contrary, the reality of a criminal indictment of him as an individual is starting to sink in. He can see his lawyer who helped him commit the crime of Margo-a-Largo being forced to testify… to be followed by a criminal indictment. He can see that the Fulton County massive criminal indictment is imminent. He can see that people close to him in the White House from his Vice President to his Chief of Staff are going to be forced to testify. He probably can see that his Congressional co-conspirators, Steve Bannon, and others will be forced to testify as well. Do you think any of them will take a bullet for him? Do you think any of them will be pushed under the bus by him?

Every day will squeeze him more. And if he lashes out in Waco or elsewhere as he did in threatening the Manhattan District Attorney, that simply means more charges added to the obstruction.

Bone-spur Boy is not a brave person. He lacks the right stuff to go into the arena unless it is a rigged professional wrestling arena, rigged professional political wrestling arena (Waco), or a cleared-out Lafayette Square. There will be no Howard Baker moment. Instead the legal Dorothys will throw buckets of water on the wicked witch of the White House West Wing as his Flying Monkeys are picked off one-by-one until there is no one left to defend him and he is all alone. If you think he is unhinged now, then there is more to come.

Biden Boldly Goes Where No President Has Gone Before

February 22, 2023
by Peter Feinman
Kirk never took a ten hour train ride. Beam me up, Scotty.

Joe Biden has boldly gone where no American President has gone before. His journey into a war zone where there are no American troops will be remembered with alongside previous American Presidential combat trips. Who can forget John Kennedy’s proclamation that he was a Berliner at the Berlin Wall or Ronald Reagan’s call to tear down that very wall in Berlin or Donald Trump’s clearing of Lafayette Square for a photo op. These are the defining moments of a presidency producing images that endure throughout history.

As one hears about the intricacies of the trip Biden undertook, one can almost hear the theme from Mission Impossible playing in the background. But now that the journey is complete, one has to ask what did it accomplish, what difference did it make?

This blog will be a bifurcated one because the significance on the global stage does not correlate with that in the domestic arena.

LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD

With this trip, Biden asserted his position as leader of the free world. He is not the leader of the unfree world. However those countries have been put on notice that he is the leader of the free world. In particular, this applies to NATO. That organization has been reinvigorated, unified, and is set to expand. None of these developments are what Putin sought when he launched his special military operation which ended up being war. The Donald Trump era of America alone and thrashing NATO is over … at least until the 2024 presidential election.

As the leader of the free world, Biden has drawn a line in sand in Ukraine. He can no longer allow Ukraine to lose. North Korea/South Korea and North Vietnam/South Vietnam divisions of Ukraine are unacceptable. There are no negotiations possible since only victory is acceptable.

PETER THE GREAT

With this trip, Biden has put Putin on notice that his dreams of Peter the Great will not be fulfilled … at least as long as Biden is President. Biden’s visit serves as a declaration that he will not allow Ukraine to fall on his watch. That means however Putin ratchets up the intensity of the Russian effort, it will be matched by Biden. There is no victory in sight for Putin.

Way back on February 6, I asked Is Putin Winning?: Joe Biden’s Moment of Truth. I wondered what Biden would do. I wrote:

The United States has expended a great deal of military equipment and moral leadership on behalf of Ukraine. Can the United States afford to just walk away from that because we fear Putin?

If we do walk away, it not only means Russia has triumphed over America, it means that China, Iran, and MAGAs have too. Far from being an isolated event, Putin’s war against Ukraine has become a world war. Think of the fuss raised over the Chinese spy balloon. Now imagine what it would be if America fails in Ukraine.

In some ways, Putin’s war against Ukraine has become Biden’s Cuban Missile Crisis.

I was not expecting an answer so quickly. One might think that Putin has received and understands the message. Now he is relegated to waiting for Western unity to crack or his lackey to return to the White House in 2025. Only then if Biden is re-elected may we learn that Putin is willing to live in the real world. Whether or not the Russian/elites military are willing to wait that long is another matter. We need to convince them that Russia is not our enemy, Putin is, and that we have a common enemy in China.

AMERICAN LEADERSHIP: DEMOCRATS

For someone with one foot in the grave – assuming he was not already dead – Biden has had a remarkably active and robust first two+ years that would make a younger President proud. Given his domestic legislation triumphs and his world leadership role against Russia and its authoritarian allies, it is hard to imagine any Democrat challenging him. So far none has. No Democratic office holder has undertaken any actions that would signify a move towards becoming a candidate.

But one needs to keep in mind that the 2024 election is a long way off. Joe Biden easily could step down on the grounds that he has achieved what he sought to achieve and then some; now it is time to turn the ship of state over to someone else. The sticking point including for those who say they don’t want Biden to run again is who that someone else should be? At this point there is no obvious successor despite the longstanding tradition broken by Obama of choosing one’s Vice President to be the successor. On the other hand, there is the example of John Fetterman. At lot can happen in a couple of years. Great athletes tend not to retire at the top of their game; they tend to wait until they have started to decline excluding any career-ending injury.

One should keep in mind that Biden does not get any credit for his achievements. He has every right to be proud of what he has accomplished. Yet somehow that has not translated into any boost in his popularity. People still say with a straight face and in all sincerity that he has not done anything. One wonders what if anything can break through that mindset.

AMERICAN LEADERSHIP: MAGA

“The President of the United States chose Ukraine over America, while forcing the American people to pay for Ukraine’s government and war,” tweeted Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) “I cannot express how much Americans hate Joe Biden.”

“Breathtaking that President Biden can show up in Ukraine to ensure their border is secure, but can’t do the same for America,” January 6 co-conspirator Rep. Scott Perry tweeted.

Rep. Matt Gaetz Gaetz and Greene are co-sponsors of the Ukraine Fatigue Act that aims to undermine support for Kyiv as the Russian invasion of its European neighbor moves into its second year. Greene wrote. “We must impeach this America Last fool before it’s too late.”

So far the Republicans have the upperhand over the MAGAs in Congress. How long that will last remains unknown. MAGA’s think differently. They have no interest in the President of the United States being the leader of the Free World. They prefer Putin to Biden. So while the call for premature withdrawal has no traction now, the situation could change.

For the moment at least, Biden has created a historically defining moment with his visit to Ukraine and speech in Poland. In the future Railroad One may become a tourist trip. If the Democrats are smart they will contrast Trump’s submissiveness to Putin at Helsinki with Biden’s defiance at Kyiv. They will contrast Trump’s “perfect phone call” to undermine Ukraine in his first impeachment with Biden’s “One year later, Kyiv stands. And Ukraine stands. The Americans stand with you, and the world stands with you.” One year ago today, Trump praised Putin for his genius, the savvy leader who had a strong army for peace. Putin expected to be in Kyiv shortly afterwards. Instead the war has not only been Zelenskyy’s moment of glory, it has become Biden’s too. Will the American people realize that?

Dorothy’s Hunt for the Wicked Witch of the West Wing: An Update

February 16, 2023
by Peter Feinman
Will the wings of Trump's minions be clipped?

Dorothy’s hunt for the Wicked Witch of the West Wing continues. Today was not a decisive day one way or another that many anticipated or hoped for. No knockout punch was delivered. No knock downs occurred. The bucket of water has not been thrown. The time for singing “Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead” has not arrived. The waiting continues.

Regardless of any legal principles involved, there is great skepticism that a wealthy white male can ever can be brought to justice anyway. In this particular case, there also is great skepticism about this individual ever even being charged with a crime given the numerous times before there has been a feeding frenzy about his imminent indictment that never seems to happen.

What can be said given the events of the last few days?

GEORGIA ON MY MIND

Although no names were mentioned in the report released today, it is still several conclusions still can be reached.

1. There are named people in the portions not released.
2. Some if not all of them are going to be indicted.
3. The release of that report and the indicting of those individuals seems imminent, as in days and not weeks or months.
4. Besides the indictments directly related to the attempt to steal the election, there also will be charges of perjury. Apparently the equivalent of a jury in numbers and as a cross-section of the community already determined that one or more people lied under oath. This development adds a new wrinkle to the proceedings. It puts witnesses on notice that no matter how clever they and their lawyers are in crafting dishonest answers, a jury is quite capable of discerning that dishonesty. That means regardless of the charges announced at the beginning of the trial, additional charges may be generated during the course of the trial. Perjury charges put witnesses on notice that when they think they are being crafty they may in fact be digging themselves deeper into a financial and legal hole. That may encourage more people to plead the 5th or to not even testify in their own defense.

We are getting closer to the first moment of truth. There is a lot to be said for not indicting the Wicked Witch of the West Wing in the initial indictments. That minimizes his ability to slow things down with frivolous lawsuits that courts are weary of since he has not been indicted. It also allows time for the people charged for a crime initiated at the hand of the Wicked Witch of the West Wing to re-assess their willingness to pay the price for the crime while he escapes scot free. The saga continues.

THE BELTWAY HIGH SPEED CHASE

Meanwhile in Washington, the investigation of the Wicked Witch of the West Wing appears to be barreling along. Like the January 6 House Select Committee, it too, has a deadline. The campaign for 2024 already is underway. Speaking now as a civilian, I would say Smith has until this summer to put up or shut up – at least for Mar-a-Largogate.

Still, things seem to be happening even if we don’t know all the details. Subpoenas have been issued for the former Vice President and Chief of Staff. That means in typical Mafioso case fashion, the prosecution has worked his way up the chain of command until he has now reached the inner circle. The Flying Monkeys are having their wings clipped. Soon they will be sitting ducks. It will be like shooting fish in a barrel if I may mix my metaphors.

One might suspect that some of the secret cases now before the judges may involve people we have not heard much about lately. People like Steve Bannon. People like Scott Perry. People like John Eastman. People like Jeffrey Clark. Some of them may be snagged in the Georgia case.

Here is where there will be a lot of doubt about whether a wealthy white man can be held to justice even if he is not the President.

BARR AND DURHAM MADE A MOCKERY OF THE RULES I WROTE

So wrote Neal Katyal in an op-ed piece in The New York Times today. He seems irked to say the least about how the rules for the Special Counsel have been trashed by these two individuals. With Barr, the politicization of the Department of Justice by the President has been well-known since even before the Mueller report was issued. That in itself raises three immediate questions:

1. Will the House Republicans who claim to be interested in the corruption of the politicization of the Department of Justice even investigate these people? – Unlikely no matter how much the Democrats push for it. On the other hand, the Inspector General seems like a better path to investigation.

2. Will the current Attorney General act against John Durham following the guidelines presented by Neal Katyal in his op-ed piece? – This is quite possible. Durham is obligated to produce a final report anyway. At this point, Durham may realize that he has sacrificed a lifetime of credibility and reputation as a reputable investigator and now has only one chance to salvage his tattered legacy.

3. What will happen to the ten obstruction charges identified by Mueller and obscured by Barr? There is no problem about indicting a sitting President any more. As in the previous item, Merrick Garland has a decision to make.

Despite the hullabaloo about the events today over the Georgia case and the revelation of new subpoenas for people very high up in the criminal conspiracy and for the secret cases, there still is a great deal of uncertainty about what will happen. In the meantime, the clock keeps ticking; and there are limits to human patience. If these investigations turn into Ph.D. theses that take forever to complete, then by the time they are done, the country will have moved on.

2023: The Year of Indictments

December 22, 2022
by Peter Feinman
House Select Committee (Jabin Botsford/Pool/Reuter)

What a week and it is not even over. Three historic stories broke this week and not in separate and discrete packages. They overlapped and challenged talk show hosts to keep up. The challenge was even greater for writers of op-ed pieces and blogs.

So let me start here with some observations about the still unfolding story of the January 6 House Select Committee.

1.  Contrary to ace prognosticator Lindsay Graham, there were no riots in the street when the Committee announced it was referring Donald J. Trump to the Department of Justice on charges of criminal behavior. Although the exact number of charges may have been a surprise, the fact that he was referred was not. So what is the reason for the lack of riots or even any action:

  • Because MAGAs do not know it happened
  • Because MAGAs are legally savvy and know a Congressional referral has no legal standing
  • Because MAGAs think their Lord and Savior, the Chosen One, Blessed Be his Name will be returned to the White House and all DOJ work against him will cease
  • Because MAGAs do not really care one way or another.

 

We need to keep in mind that the Congressional referrals were hardly a surprise. People were just waiting for them to happen. There is a lesson here for Jack Smith: no surprise actions. Keep the people informed. Give us time for your actions to percolate in our brains so when the moment comes any anger will have been diffused.

2. Mar-a-Lagogate which is not even part of the House Select Committee’s report should be the first charge against a former President. He admitted state the items were his and that he did it. It is a slam dunk case. There is no MAGA issue. And now there is a simply visual and question to support the charge:

WHEN JOE BIDEN LEAVES THE WHITE HOUSE SHOULD HE ABLE TO TAKE THE UKRAINIAN FLAG AS A SOUVENIR?

The answer obviously is “No.”  I predict that this charge will not rile up the base beyond the usual denunciations on Foxhub and in Congress.

3. The alternate electors should be the next indictments. All the people who took the Fifth or who did not testify at all will be charged as well. This indictment will include the usual cast of characters known to the American people nationally or in their home state. There will be continual reminders about the MAFIOSO take the Fifth as has started already. Again by the time the indictment are made, they will be no surprise. People are not going to be up in arms over John Eastman, Rudy Giuliani, or Scott Perry (except maybe in his Congressional district). These indictments will be more of “everyone knows they are coming so it’s no big deal when it finally happens.”

There are three spinoffs to these indictments.

First, they mean constant media coverage in the states of the alternate electors about the legal actions directed against them. These alternate electors are from the seven battleground states, the states that are critical to who wins or loses presidential elections. That means continual bad press coverage for the leading Republicans in the state who either directly participated in the fraud or who aided and abetted it there. This constant bad coverage against the local Republicans who did try to steal the elections carrying over into 2024 election cycle will be to the detriment of MAGA Republicans and to the advantage of the Democrats.

Second, the indictments mean all the voter suppression laws passed by the Republicans in response to the fraudulent Stop the Steal claims are bogus and should be reversed. If the Republicans are still in the majority at the state level and take no action  – let the in our gerrymandered suppressed voters decide – then the Democrats will have an excellent rally cry against the Republican criminal liars who perpetrated the actual attempt to steal the election.

Third, the indictments/convictions against the leading MAGAs in the state will provide an opportunity for Real Republicans to take back their Party given all the openings in the Party structure.

4. Witness tampering is hard to prove so let us wait and see what else is in the transcripts or what the DOJ uncovers.

5. Follow the money should be an easier case to make, but let us be real. The victimized people are MAGAs so how much sympathy does anyone have for them? Even they have not complained.

6. The big one will be the violent insurrection on January 6 itself. Here is where there are many more people to interview including all those who took the Fifth, who defied the Congressional subpoena, or who simply ignored it. This group includes members of the House of Representatives including most likely the Speaker. This investigation will take longer. Some of the people knew exactly what the plan was in the War Room (Bannon, Giuliani, Stone, Meadows, Jordan, and Trump among others). Putting together the pieces will take time.

While there will not be public presentation as with the House Select Committee, there probably will be enough in the news to keep the public informed. Plus there is always the possibility of someone having a “Come to Jesus” moment. How much of their life (and money) do they want to spend on Digital Donny especially if they think he will not be the nominee in 2024 yet alone the victor? They still have lives to live. They know he would throw them under the bus without hesitation. Loyalty is a one way street for him. Over time, some of these people would rather not suffer the consequences of Michael Cohen but even more so. The indictments for January 6 where many people have the opportunity to stew about the consequences to them will be the most complex. They will be ridiculed constantly with video displays of having taken the Fifth.

With the transfer of action from the House Select Committee to the DOJ led by Jack Smith the venue changes. Once the holiday season is over the serious wok of legal indictments accelerates. Collectively this will make 2023 the year of indictments at the Federal level plus at the state, county, and city level in Georgia, New York State, New York City, Westchester County, the District of Columbia and who knows where else. Trump has nothing to look forward to for the rest on this year and in 2023, the Year of Indictments. And there is more to come.

 

Digital Donny Rorschach Test: Prelude to Criminal Referrals

December 18, 2022
by Peter Feinman
Rorschach test for an immature child

What was he thinking? What was he thinking on January 6?  What was he thinking with his latest con? The question of intent has and is an important one in the ongoing investigations of his criminal activities during the last days of his presidency. Fortunately, we now have expert testimony on the state of mind of the Loser.

Chuck Schumer:

…for her first 35 to 40 years of life she (Nancy Pelosi) raised five children so she knew how to deal with children. And that’s what helped her deal with Trump because he ultimately was a child (CNN interview)

Nancy Pelosi:

I think there is a need for an intervention of something, you know, by his family (CNN interview).

Sorry Nancy, there can be no intervention with an immature child. You correctly diagnose him but then seek to apply an adult solution.

Tom Nichols

Musk’s petty outbursts make you wonder how dangerous it would be if a narcissistic, self-interested, vindictive adolescent ever gained a major political office such as, say, the White House. But I digress. (The Atlantic).

Paul Krugman:

Trump, however, comes across as 76 going on a very bratty 14 (NYT 11/15/22 print).

Alex Wagner:

Trump photo shopped into the scenarios of a 10-year-old boy (MSNBC 12/16/22).

For years, for years and years, I have been referring to Little Donny Waney as an immature child with the emotional maturity of a three-year old per his niece, Mary Trump. It is nice to see more and more people getting on the bandwagon (not that I deserve any credit for it).

He was an immature child when his father put the thirteen-year old in military school in the vain hope that he would man up. He remains an immature child today. He will be one the day he dies. There’s nothing anyone can do about it. He never acts childish, he is a child.

These insights should be brought to mind when seeking to go inside the mind of the Insurrectionist in-chief. It is silly to compare him to adult authoritarian leaders in Russia, China, Turkey and so on. Instead think seventh grade smart-aleck-dumb-aleck seeking to play the game of President and then being told he can’t play anymore.

Let’s examine four famous incidents exposing his immature mind at work.

Professional Wrestling Arena

 

Back in 2007 before 80,000 screaming professional wrestling fans, THE DONALD against all odds took down WWE’s Vince McMahon. After this battle for the ages, THE DONALD then shaved the head of his vanquished foe. So in-between grabbing women, THE DONALD demonstrated his prowess as a warrior in this battle of the “billionaire” executives.

Lafayette Square War Hero Mocks Losers Spartacus and 300 Spartans (September 6, 2020 blog)

Bonespur Boy is the greatest warrior President in American history. Who can forget his triumphalist victory at the Battle of Lafayette Square? There he stood alone amidst thousands of heavily armed terrorists, anarchists, and criminals here illegally. Despite his precarious situation he remained resolute bolstered by his faith in God and in the sanctity of his mission. At last after a long and brutal struggle, he emerged from this predicament triumphant. He then thrust his powerful arms towards the heavens brandishing an upside-down Bible, the fiercest weapon in his arsenal. Another square had been secured in the fight against demonic chaos that threatened the land.

The alpha-male-wannabee was not done. He knew there were more battles to be fought throughout America. He admonished his governors to dominate their cities, not to be weak. He warned them if that if they lacked the requisite strength to dominate, that he would unleash the fearsome forces at his disposal to do what they could not. He would prevail. Victory would be attained. The forces of evil would be defeated.

Maskless Macho Macho Boy

The most heroic action by an American President ever

Perhaps the single most weeny act by the Loser President occurred when he returned from the hospital. The standing before an adoring crowd of worshippers, Little Donny Wanney unveiled himself. When statues are erected to commemorate his weeniest action as President, it well may be this heroic action of ripping of his covid mask. The palpitations in the crowd were intense. I think there were even images of Rambo Trump being carried by people. Truly this was his Iwo Jima moment where instead of raising the flag, he was removing his mask. I still shudder just thinking about this vision of masculinity on display at the White House.

Putting aside his great love for playing with his action toys – my generals – putting aside his crack about not admiring John McCain because he had been caught, a deep-seated lifelong pattern emerges. Yes he is a child but he is a child with a desperate need to be taken seriously as an adult.

Seen in this perspective, Digital Donny makes sense. He needs to project an image not of his submissiveness to Putin but as a figure of towering strength. The Digital Donny cards express his inner self. It is not necessary to ask the child what he feels. He has created multiple avatars to do that for him.

But once again the law of unintended consequences occurred. He did not expect to become a laughing stock. He did not expect to become a laughing stock to people who had remained silent, defied subpoenas, and risked jail for him. Think of Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Time Magazine’s Person of the Year day in and day out fighting on behalf of his people against Putin and contrast those images with those of the immature child faking being an adult leader. The Ukrainian people have rallied behind their leader who they know is in the trenches with them. Zelensky may be the comedian but it is Trump who is the joke. Do you want to put your life on the line on behalf of Digital Donny? Do you want to risk real prison-time and large legal bills of behalf of Digital Donny?

These images of Digital Donny probably will become weapons against him should he seriously pursue the nomination in 2024. They also will make it easier to indict him. Before, there always was the image and aura of the Presidency behind hm. It enveloped him providing a protective shield even as a former President. How could you indict a person with the prestige and status of the Presidency? Now the person who said that he did it on Mar-a-Lago documents and terminate the Constitution on behalf of a President greater than Washington, greater than Lincoln, indicting him has become easier. Digital Donny is not only a joke to comedians, talk show hosts, pundits, and politicians, he is a joke to jurors as well.

     

His Day of Trumpfamy: His Worst Day So Far – More to Come After

December 7, 2022
by Peter Feinman
December 6, 2022 A Day in Trumpfamy

December 6, 2022, will be remembered as a Day of Trumpfamy for the once Teflon-person now fading into political obscurity as a Loser. It marks a convenient demarcation point to track his downward slide into criminal oblivion. In the years to come scholars may offer other days especially since there is more to come but in someways December 6, 2022, will mark a bookend to January 6, 2021, from the moment he sought to overthrown the Constitution he later said to should be terminated, to the movement he perhaps started to realize that he has nothing to long forward to except possibly the collapse of his company and the clanging of prison doors behind him.

CRIMINAL: TRUMP BUSINESS

On the business side, the results on the Day of Infamy are obvious. The Trump Organization was found guilty on 17 counts of fraud and conspiracy. In some ways, this case was a slam dunk – the chief financial officer already had pleaded guilty and testified against the organization. The defense rested on the claim that the head of the organization had no idea what was going to and that Allen Weisselberg was acting solely on his own and for own benefit. The defense could have presented a stronger case to document that Trump was inept and incompetent and didn’t know what was going on if it had referred to his mishandling of the COVID leading to the preventable deaths of thousands, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of Americans but it chose not to take that path.

What are the consequences of this conviction? Besides the fact it took the jury a New York minute to convict, it doesn’t bode well for others cases to come to in New York. The Manhattan District Attorney has just fortified his office with a Trump-Killer so it is only a matter of time now before the next indictment is sought. When it happens the suit will name names including probably everyone in his family much to the joy of Michael Cohen.

The New York State Attorney General needs no push to move ahead with that lawsuit.

All in all, 2023 is shaping up as a banner year for more loses for the Loser due to his business dealings … and maybe for members of his family too. Will he throw any of them under the bus? Will any of them seek to save their own skins? The drama continues.

CRIMINAL: TRUMP INSURRECTION

The House Select Committee is moving forward. Sometime this month, the report will be made public so even Kevin McCarthy and Jim Jordan will have the opportunity to read it. As part of the release, the Committee will make criminal referrals against the planners of the insurrection. It is reasonable to expect that the Hitman will be number one on the list. It is reasonable to expect that those who chose not to cooperate in the investigation will be named also. All in all, the announcement December 6, 2022, Day of Trumpfamy, is like the Ghost of Christmas Future by the House Select Committee bearings tidings of bad days to come.

The same applies to the Department of Justice. We know now the DOJ under the direction of the Jack Smith, the new special counsel, has been busy sending subpoenas to people in multiple states who participated in the effort to overthrow the election from the comforts of home. In some ways the potential case against the alternate electors is another slam dunk. The phonies who thought it was a lark, a goof, or maybe it might even work are now realizing that there are consequences for their actions. A judge has already ruled that John Eastman and Donald Trump were engaged in criminal activities. As the good decent phony electors start to face the music it will be interesting to see who decides to sing first and what names they will name as part of a plea bargaining.

So here is one proposed scenario of indictments.

1. Mar-a-Lagogate – a slam dunk case where the accused on his own recognizance and of his own free will admitted that he did it. Obviously his lawyers will not allow him to take the stand in his own defense. The only questions are who will he take down with him and who will seek a plea deal. Now that the special master has been dispensed with and the Trump judge has been put in her place, it is only a matter of a short period of time before the indictments. Oh wait, there are even more classified documents still in his possession!

2. Fake Electors – another straightforward case. Jack Smith has identified the people the DOJ wants to interview. Once that is done, indictments will follow.

3. January 6 – Insurrection indictments will take longer given the number of people who will be subpoenaed and the greater complexity of the case. Still everyone knows the indictments. In part they will build on the momentum of the other cases. We may get to a point where the accused becomes a figure of sympathy and right-wing media and the Freedom Caucus calls for throwing the flag for piling it on. Of course, by that time, some of them will be under indictment too.

Irony of irony, on the Day of Trumpfamy, the Capitol police were honored by the House.

Then in the midst of all this federal activity by the DOE, the Fulton County District Attorney also be issuing indictments.

So on the insurrection front like the New York front, the Loser has nothing to forward to.

POLITICAL: TRUMP THE LOSER

Trump’s aura as a loser grows larger with each passing day. On December 6, 2022, the Day of Trumpfamy, another one of his chosen candidates lost. Clearly if a real Republican had run in Georgia the results might have been quite different. Republicans proved quite capable of winning statewide elections in Georgia. Not so for the Trumpican candidate. The historic result is a net pick up one-Senate seat in the midterms for the out-of-power party. In addition, that one vote makes a big difference in the operation of the Senate. The reign of Joe Manchin is over.

Despite Hershel Walker being such a flawed candidate, he ended with some comments that directly rebut the Stop the Steal MAGA nonsense. He did not claim the election was rigged. Georgia is not Arizona. He called up his supporters to keep dreaming, respect the Constitution, and pray for the elected officials, all things MAGA Trump would never do.

Politically, the greater Trump’s aura as a loser becomes, the weaker he becomes politically. His rantings and ravings will become more and more meaningless since they are those of a Loser who will continue to be a loser in 2023. More and more Republicans will not want to kiss the ring or comply with any of his calls to action. The Freedom Caucus will experience some raucous closed-door sessions as it tries to pursue its losing agenda. Really, how many people care about Hunter Biden outside a closed loop of losers?

The combined actions of December 6, 2022, Day of Trumpfamy, mark an acceleration into the demise of Donald Trump as a political factor in American politics. His disappearance won’t happen overnight, but any given day it will become worse. I have used the Wicked Witch of the West in multiple blogs to describe what will happen to him … and the joy of the Munchkins singing when the first witch died. I was pleased hear Governor John Kasich also use the Wicked Witch motif: Donald Trump is melting before our very eyes and at some point even Republicans in Congress will be ready to mop up and discard that puddle.

Happy Holidays.

Is America Ready for a Three Party System?

December 5, 2022
by Peter Feinman
Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

The unsung 1824 Bicentennial is fast upon us. Soon it will be only a year away. The year has been a personal favorite of mine. It has been the subject of blogs since 2016.

The year marks the transition from the First Party System to the Second Party System. It was the end of the Virginian-dominated American Revolution era and start of the Jacksonian dominated one. The Federalists and the Republicans were out and the Whigs and Democrats would be in. The new system would last until the demise of the Whigs and the emergence of the Republicans under Lincoln. It also was a time of Senate giants like Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, and Daniel Webster.

Putting aside all the talk about the Civil War today, the squabbling over the Speaker position in the House of Representatives suggests we may be in for a de facto three party system in the next session of Congress.

THREE-PARTY SYSTEM 

America is not designed for a three-party system. In Europe and Israel, multiple parties are par for the course. After every election, the jockeying for power begins by the various parties. Which one can form majority? That is not the American way where the two-party system is sacred.

Until now. Right now the House of Representatives beginning in January is divided into three groups:

213 Democrats
182 Republicans
40  Freedom Party.

No one of the groups has the magic 218 votes needed to form a majority and elect a speaker. There has been talk of multiple ballots in an unprecedented situation. Perhaps Kevin McCarthy will deal for the position he has coveted. Perhaps he will drop out when he realizes he cannot win and a host of new candidates will emerge. Perhaps cross-party deals will be made. We are in uncharted waters.

SUPPOSE MCCARTHY WINS

Suppose McCarthy wins, then what? Even if he can cobble together a winning coalition with 4 votes to spare, that will not be the end of his problems in holding together the Republicans and the Freedom Party.

Every subsequent vote will be a battle for him. There already is a 21 member faction that has openly expressed its displeasure with the Freedom Party shenanigans and its extreme agenda. Many Republicans ran on a platform of getting things done including reaching across the aisle. If you were elected in 2022 from a Congressional District that Joe Biden won in 2020, you don’t want to face the voters in 2024 with nothing to show except you shut down the government.

Consider the issues important to the voters as identified in surveys versus the ones propounded by the Freedom Party. Voters are concerned about jobs, inflation, the economy and the threat to democracy. By contrast the Freedom Party agenda consists of:

Relitigating the 2020 election
Investigating Hunter Biden
Investigating the House Select Committee
Impeaching Joe Biden.

None of these issues are on the radar of the Real Republicans. So if McCarthy does win the speaker vote, he is still going to have to deal with the agenda of Freedom Party which has limited support beyond its own Party. On the other hand, there will be plenty of real Republicans ready to deal with the issues Americans actually care about and willing to vote in a bipartisan manner. McCarthy will be walking a land mine field each and every vote.

THE INSURRECTION AND THE FREEDOM PARTY

Simultaneously, McCarthy is going to be forced to deal with the legal challenges to members of the Freedom Party. The House Select Committee may refer ethic charges be filed against the Representatives who did not comply its subpoenas. It may request the current House in its last few days ask the Department of Justice to pursue indictments against the January 6 conspirators who have refused to testify. The various options and scenarios still are to be played out. Suffice it to say some of the most vocal people in the Freedom Party are likely to be questioned by the DOJ at some point in the future about their role in the insurrection.

There is a human element in the insurrection that so far has been overlooked. The President of the United States was supposed to arrive at the Capitol Building and lead his followers both armed and unarmed into the House chambers. When Steve Bannon broadcasted to his listeners to strap in because what was going happen was not what they expected, he knew what had been decided. Roger Stone knew what had been decided in the War Room. Some Congressional Representatives knew what had been decided in the War Room, too. None of them have testified to the DOJ so far.

This means at some point the plan did not go as expected. The Secret Service declined to drive to the Capitol. No matter how vigorously the President objected, they returned to the White House and did not succumb to his wishes.

The question then to be asked is when did the co-conspirators in the House chambers realize the plan had failed and what did they do then? According to the War Room plans, the President of the United States was to lead his people into Chambers and intimidate the Vice President into disqualifying the vote of the states with the fake electors. The President was to force a delay in the certification until all the disputed votes could be resolved.

Instead there was a leaderless mob roaming the halls and offices of Congress seeking to hang Nancy Pelosi. That was not part of the War Room plan. The result of the collapse of the plan due to the failure of the President to lead his people into the House chambers was that the members of Congress had to scramble for their lives. Run Josh Run!

We have yet to hear the testimony what the War Room plan known to Steve Bannon was or how the congressional co-conspirators learned that it had failed and they were on their own now.  So while Jim Jordan may initiate an investigation of the House Select Committee, he and the other congressional co-conspirators (and Mark Meadows among others) will be called to testify about their own role in the January 6 insurrection. This is why Mar-a-Largogate will be prosecuted first. It is a more straightforward case whereas there still are many people to be subpoenaed by the DOJ before the full story is known.

DONALD TRUMP: OVERTHROW THE CONSTITUTION

In the meantime, the chief conspirator will be giving his rather astonishing marching orders to the new Speaker.

So now it comes out, conclusively, that the FBI BURIED THE HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP STORY BEFORE THE ELECTION knowing that, if they didn’t, “Trump would have easily won the 2020 Presidential Election.” This is massive FRAUD & ELECTION INTERFERENCE at a level never seen before in our Country. Remedy: Declare the rightful winner or, this would be the minimal solution, declare the 2020 Election irreparably compromised and have a new Election, immediately! (8/29/22)

Do you throw the Presidential Election Results of 2020 OUT and declare the RIGHTFUL WINNER, or do you have a NEW ELECTION? A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution. Our great ‘Founders’ did not want, and would not condone, False & Fraudulent Elections! (12/3/22)

While McCarthy is trying to bring order to his unruly House, the Loser will be continually fanning flames. Besides his partnering with anti-Semitic racists, he is continuing to up the stakes. The immature child with the emotional maturity of a three-year old has elevated his ranting and ravings to new levels. The person who has shown no loyalty to the Constitution when it prevented him from playing his game of “I am the President. Your loyalty is to me,” has called for the scrapping of the very document he swore to uphold.

Despite all the machinations of Pillow Head and Séance Sidney, he was not restored to the White House in 2021 nor is he going to be in 2022. He may even have doubts about 2024 now. Why he thinks a do-over election would be favorable to him is a mystery given the results of the recent election. Or in lieu of a new election, who is going to throw out the results of the 2020 election as he tried to do January 6 and declare him the winner? Is that what he expected the Vice President to do on January 6? Will he so testify under oath to the DOJ? Does he expect the new Speaker do so now?

Team Normal Republicans did not run on an agenda of overthrowing the Constitution. Even the Freedom Party pledges loyalty to it provided it is interpreted correctly. Meanwhile the Loser will ratchet up the expectations of what he wants his Speaker to do. He will do so secure in the belief that his base will never abandon him and is of sufficient size to prevent anyone else from grabbing the nomination. The more desperate he becomes, the far-fetched his texts will become and the more Speaker McCarthy will have to walk a fine line. As of this writing he remains silent about the head of his Party calling for the overthrow of the Constitution. Democrats are sure to ask him where he stands on this issue. In other words, even if McCarthy wins the battle to become Speaker, his problems are only just beginning.

Witch Hunter Scorecard: A Christmas Necessity

November 29, 2022
by Peter Feinman
Will the wings of Trump's minions be clipped?

Can you name all the witch hunts against the Wicked Witch of the West? It is not so easy. Keeping track of all the investigations, indictments, and trials against the Mar-a-Lago President is a challenge. I have watched TV announcers struggle to get through them all in a single session. Sometimes, the network just gives up and moves on to other news items.

There needs to be a better way. There needs to be a better to track the various seemingly ever-mounting number of suits in a constructive way that provides the viewer with a visual of what the talking head is talking about.

Therefore, I propose that a Wicked Witch of West scorecard be created. I am not going to pretend that I know all the investigations in all the areas at all the government levels currently underway. I will leave it to others to gather the information. I do know that when I am watching TV or reading an article about the witch hunts, sometimes my head spins. That is why we need a standard nomenclature. If we can track our World Wars and our Superbowls, we should be able to devise a systematic way of identifying all the legal cases involving the former President. This list then would be available digitally or perhaps on an app. That way people easily could access individual cases based on personal interest or all of them as one sees fit.

One important reason for making this request is that we are now reaching crunch time. The Trump is hitting the fan. With the appointment of a Special Counsel Jack Smith the pace will accelerate, not slow down. That is why it is essential to have a firm control for tracking the status of all the witch hunts being conducted against the Loser ex-President.

TAXES

Whatever system is used, it needs to be adaptable for new items. For example, sometime in the next few weeks it is likely that his tax returns will be made public. He declined to make them public in 2016 and 2020 because he something to hide.

He is not as wealthy as he claims he is.
He donates no or little money to charity unless it is to himself.
He uses every trick in the book and sometimes one that aren’t to minimize his taxes.
He has financial connections with Russia and Saudi Arabia.

From the moment his taxes are released there will be an army of volunteers pouring through them looking for illegal activity. Undoubtedly their exuberance will get the better of them as we saw in the Steele dossier. Still, all in all, such scrutiny by an unofficial investigatory army is likely pay dividends.

PEOPLE THROWN UNDER THE BUS

At least one trial is already underway in New York with another on the way. The focus on the tried and true technique of DELAY, DELAY DELAY has a sibling technique – throw someone under the bus. Who is that person? I never saw him before? Oh you have photos!  I take pictures with a lot of people. You can’t expect me to remember everyone who takes a picture with even if I do have the world’s greatest memory.

Alongside the Witch Hunt scorecard, there should be a list of people who are likely to be thrown under the bus.

There should also be a betting pool as to who if anyone will come clean.

HE STILL HAS NOTHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO

Right now he is experiencing death by a thousand cuts, some of them self-inflicted. Perhaps one day there will be an OMG moment. Instead what we are likely to see is the steady drip of bad moments, some anticipated, some not.

Oath Keepers have been found guilty of sedition. How do you feel know if you are a Proud Boy? What about a fake elector? Is this what you signed up for?

There will be a steady stream of witnesses subpoenaed by the DOE. Do you want to defy one?

There will be a jury trial decision for a case in New York City for fraud by the Trump Organization. Perhaps it will go his way.

There will be a vote in Georgia involving one of his special Senate selections. Perhaps it will go his way.

There will a ruling on the Special Master, the review of documents, and the position of the Trump judge on Mar-a-Largogate. These judges and courts have had enough of the Trumpantics. And now that he has admitted that “I did it,” what is he purpose of all this smoke and mirrors anyway? Isn’t it time to cut to the chase and just indict him? Happy Holidays!

The House Select Committee will release its report in December. That should be good for several news cycles. It will remind people that he attempted to overthrow the government just as his acolytes are trying to do the same in Arizona.

Undoubtedly there will be unexpected opportunities for him to put his foot in his mouth and prove the validity of his lawyers never allowing him to take the stand. How exactly did anti-Semitic racists he did not know clear the Secret Service screening to be able to dine with the former President anyway? The drip you hear is his support dripping away. It is not yet a tsunami but there is still time.

INDICTMENTS

“…there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns — the ones we don’t know we don’t know.”      Donald Rumsfeld

By the time Donald Trump is indicted, it will be the single most anticipated event since his announcement that he is running once again for President. It is a known known.  No one will be surprised by it. It is hard to imagine a more telegraphed event than indicting him. Given all that has and will transpire, the prophecy of the Senator from South Carolina is likely to prove false. The nation will not be up in arms. There will not be riots in the street. There will not even be surprise. Instead, everyone will have their Wicked Witch of the West Witch Hunt scorecard and just mark off the appropriate Witch Hunt as having moved to the indictment.